Means for progressively establishing and dissolving spheres of magnetic influence.



v No. 785,338. 'VPATENTEDMMAR. 21, 1905.

' I G. THOMPSON & H. W. MERCHANT.

MEANS FOR PROGRESSIVBLY ESTABLISHING AND DISSOLVING S HERBS OF'MAGNETIG INFLUENCE.

APPLIOATION FILED AUG. 17. 1993.

UNITED STATES Patented March 21, 1905.

PATENT OFFICE.

GUION THOMPSON AND HUNTINGTON MERCHANT, OF NEW YORK, N. Y., ASSIGNORS TO THE THOMPSON SAFETY APPLIANCE COMPANY, OF JERSEY CITY, NEW JERSEY, A CORPORATION OF NEW JERSEY.

MEANS FOR PROGRESSIVELY ESTABLISHING AND DlSSOLVlNG SPHERES OF MAGNETIC INFLUENCE.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 785,338, dated March 21, 1905. Application filed August 17, 1903. Serial No. 169,788.

119 all whom it may concern.-

Be it known that we, GUION THOMPSON and HUNTINGTON W. MERCHANT, citizens of the United States, residing at the city of New York, in the State of New York, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Means for Progressively Establishing and Dissolving Spheres of Magnetic Influence; and wedo hereby declare the following to be to a full, clear, and exact description of' the invention, such as will enable others skilled in the art to which it appertains to make and use the same.

Our invention relates to means for progressively establishing and dissolving spheres of magnetic influence, and has for its object the provision of means which may be operated by transient means to establish a sphere of magnetic influence upon the route of a conveyance and which may be subsequently operated by said transient means at a point farther along said route to dissolve the sphere thus established.

With this and other objects in view it consists of the constructions, combinations, and arrangements of parts hereinafter described and claimed.

In the accompanying drawings, Figure 1 is a diagrammatic view of our'said invention in position for establishing the sphere of magnetic influence. Fig. 2 is a diagrammatic view of said invention in position for dissolving said sphere of magnetic influence.

In the drawings, 1 and 2 are relatively short sections of railway-track insulated at each end by insulation-blocks 3 3 or in any suitable manner from the adjoining rails A of relatively long sections of track alined therewith. Said rail 1 is electrically connected around the intervening rail 4 and the intervening insulation with rail 2 by means of the conductors 5, 6, and 7, including the coil of an electromagnet 8, and with the, poles of battery 9 or other suitable source of electricity by said conductor 5, a normally open contact 11, and conductor '12, and by said conductors 5 6 and a conductor 13, with which conductor 13 said conductor 7 is also electrically connected. A

' as said conductor 12 is connected to.

contact plate or rail 15 adjacent to said rail 1 and normally insulated therefrom is electrically connected to the same pole of the battery Acontact plate or rail 16 adjacent to said rail 2 and normally insulated therefrom is connected to the same pole of the battery as conductor 12 is connected to, and said contact-plates 15 and 16 are in operative alinement with each other parallel with said track rails. Upon said track is represented a conveyance 17, equipped with a suitable contact-shoe 17, adapted in operation to contact successively with said contact-plates 15 and 16 as said conveyance moves alongsaid track, which shoe in 006peration with the frame and wheels of said conveyance or suitable portions thereof is adapted to forman electrical connection or circuitclosing means between said rail l and said contact-plate 15 or between said rail 2 and said contact-plate 16, according to the position of the conveyance. It is obvious, however, that within the scope of our invention the character of said conductors and of the source of electricity may be greatly altered so long as the same general electrical relation of the rails, magnet, contacts, and source of electricity toeach other are preserved.

For the purposegof showing a utility of said invention we have shown on said conveyance a lever 18, pivoted to the under frame of said conveyance'and adapted to pass over said elect'romagnet 8 and to be attracted downward towardsaid magnet as it passes over the same. To the free end of said lever is attached a'wire or cord 19, connected at its opposite end with the circuit breaker 20, which is electrically connected with one of the poles of a battery 21, carried upon said conveyance, the opposite pole of which battery is connected with a signal-lamp 22. Said circuit-breaker 20 may be normally held out of contact with said lamp by a back spring 23.

The operation of our invention is as follows: As a conveyance so equipped passes contactplate 15, the shoe contacts therewith, and thereby'closes a circuit from said battery 9 through the coil of said magnet 8, the rail 1,

the wheels and frame of said conveyance, the shoe 17, and the contact-plate 15 back to said battery, thus energizing said magnet 8, which operates to close said normally open contact 1 1. Said conveyance having passed said plate 15 the circuit is maintained from said battery through said coil, and the contact 11 back to said battery. If now a conveyance similarly equipped, following the first said conveyance, arrives over said magnet before said first convenance reaches said contact-plate 16, the lever 18 on the second conveyance will be attracted toward said magnet, thus drawing said circuit-breaker 20 into electrical contact with said lamp 22, and producing a signallight to warn the driver of said conveyance of the occupancy of the track in advance. When the first said conveyance arrives at the contactplate 16 and the shoe 17 contacts therewith, the current from said battery 9 will be short-circuited from said magnet 8 and the circuit will be temporarily established from said battery through said rail 2, the wheels, frame, and shoe of the first said conveyance, the contact-plate 16, and back to the battery. When the current is thus short-circuited from said magnet, the contact 11 will be broken and the following conveyance may proceed.

It is obvious that the details of construction may be greatly altered within the scope of our said invention so long as the relation of the circuits is preserved. The means carried by said conveyance and adapted to be operated in part by said electromagnet may also be greatly varied.

Having now described our invention, what we claim, and desire to secure by Letters Patent, is

1. The combination of a normally open cirby said transient circuit-closing contact, substantially as described.

2. A multiple-electric circuit, including a source of electricity common to each of its branches, the coil of an electromagnet common to two of said branches, a separate normally open circuit-controlling contact in each of said branches, a traveling contact adapted to close the normally open contact of one of said branches in which said electromagnet is included and subsequently to leaving and reopening the latter said contact to close the normally open contact of the branch in which said electromagnet is not included; and means governed by said electromagnet adapted to close the normally open contact of. the other electromagnet-containing branch when said electromagnet is energized.

In testimony whereof we hereunto affix our signatures in presence of two witnesses.

GUION THOMPSON. HUNTINGTON W. MERCHANT. Witnesses as to Guion Thompson: FRANCES LEE J OHNSON, LIONIE THOMPSON.

Witnesses as to Huntington W. Merchant:

JOHN J. LORDAN, THOMAS J. ORoURKE. 

